Activities of Marlene MIZZI related to 2014/2241(INI)
Plenary speeches (2)
New challenges and concepts for the promotion of tourism in Europe (debate)
New challenges and concepts for the promotion of tourism in Europe (A8-0258/2015 - Isabella De Monte)
Amendments (22)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 1 a (new)
Citation 1 a (new)
- having regard to the Commission Communication entitled ‘A European Strategy for more Growth and Jobs in Coastal and Maritime Tourism’ (COM(2014)0086),
Amendment 1 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph -1 (new)
Paragraph -1 (new)
-1. Notes that tourism is one of the world's largest industries and Europe is one of the world's major cultural tourism destinations; underlines that tourism is rapidly changing and the tourism industry is constantly subject to evolution, therefore Europe and the Member States need to continuously protect and promote what is truly indigenous by revealing special features and characteristics of natural, cultural and historical heritage;
Amendment 10 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Draws the attention to the crucial role played by digital revolution in the tourism industry; calls on the Commission to ensure that all tourism sectors and businesses, and in particular SMEs, make the best use of new technologies offered by the internet, in order to expand their electronic commerce in the internal market and move towards higher value digitalised products and processes, whilst at the same time ensuring that citizens and consumers have fair and affordable access to high quality and safe services;
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. The Union is a maritime continent, and Coastal and Maritime Tourism is the largest maritime activity in Europe. This represents more than a third of the maritime economy, directly affecting many other sectors of the EU economy and employing 3.2 million people, most between the ages of 16 and 35. It should also be noted that this sector has been a lever for growth and job creation, particularly in the Atlantic and Mediterranean regions;
Amendment 19 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses that the promotion of more Visa Tourism platforms with a cautious approach towards the simplification of the Visa Code is an important component to increase tourists from outside Europe; highlights the potential of touring visas for groups or tourists who had already been in the country and the importance of implementing more visa waiver agreements in order to make optimum use of international tourist arrivals;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Draws attention to the crucial role played by cultural education in generating demand for high-quality, sustainable and inclusive cultural tourism; calls for better use to be made of the opportunities digitisation and innovation afford for more effective promotion of European cultural tourism; is of the opinion that the development a fully functioning digital single market together with more proactive use of social media has the potential of modernizing and developing the tourism industry in order to promote and communicate Europe's cultural and natural heritage around the world;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Is concerned with the existing skill mismatches on the labour market in the tourism industry, and with the lack of interest among young people to pursue careers in certain tourism sectors; stresses the importance of investing in education and training, with specific attention to higher qualifications and soft skills development, in order to improve the quality of tourism jobs and job prospects across the sector, and to motivate human resources to consider a career in the tourism industry, through consistent training and other incentives;
Amendment 35 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Reiterates the need for a well-trained, informed, motivated and committed labour force; stresses that more awareness of history and culture by people working in the industry is essential to further promote historical and cultural heritage of tourism destinations;
Amendment 36 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Stresses that Europe must keep its position as the world's number one tourist destination; welcomes the organisation of events and communication campaigns that promote Europe as a tourism destination in particular with third countries' markets and calls on all stakeholders involved to jointly promote Europe not only as a tourist destination, but as well as a destination of excellence with a diversity of national destinations, cultures and tourism services without distorting competition between them;
Amendment 40 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Calls on the Commission to explore the possibility of creating a European Tourism Calendar to coordinate information about European tourism destinations from all member States in all official languages in order to improve consumer's information services and help them find guidance and directions about events, places, and festivals among others;
Amendment 41 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Points out that access needs to be made more universal by taking into account, in particular, the needs of people with disabilities, families with children and older persons and adapting the facilities and services on offer accordingly; suggests to the European Commission and the Member States to examine different possibilities of launching projects and funds to enable the younger population, people with special needs, low-income families and other vulnerable citizens to visit the countries' cultural destinations;
Amendment 56 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Points out that Europe's cultural heritage makes it one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world and that cultural tourism, which is of key importance in boosting growth and employment, accounts for 40 % of European tourism; emphasises that, in order to maintain current tourist volumes and attract new tourists, Europe's cultural and natural heritage needs to be conserved and showcased and the right balance needs to be struck between expanding the tourism sector and protecting cultural heritage so that tourism is developed in a sustainable way to preserve natural and environmental values for the benefit of visitors and host population;
Amendment 65 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Is of the opinion that Europe needs to constantly adapt to the new trends in the tourism industry in order to retain its international competitiveness; Stresses that cultural events are becoming more and more important to tourists and to tourism destinations and therefore there is a need to organise and promote local and international cultural events; Suggests to the European Commission and to Member States to examine the possibility of creating European calendar of events to improve tourism information services, so that travellers can easily find information about exhibitions, festivals, sporting events and other cultural events;
Amendment 71 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 b (new)
Paragraph 4 b (new)
4b. Stresses the importance of promoting the "European Capital of Culture" initiative in order to further develop the image of Europe as a high-quality cultural tourism destination, and to attract tourists from European as well as more distant markets;
Amendment 93 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Calls on the Commission to ensure that consumers, who are increasingly using electronic means to plan and purchase their travel arrangements, are to be provided with objective information concerning their rights and with efficient, expedient and affordable means of redress to protect their rights;
Amendment 187 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Recognises the importance of this strategy for Coastal and Island Areas, in line with the strategy on Blue Growth and the EU2020, which presents a set of common responses to the many challenges they face;
Amendment 188 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 b (new)
Paragraph 13 b (new)
13b. Strongly encourages the Commission to present an Action Plan to accompany the 14 actions described, with concrete goals and timetables and to report to Parliament on the progress of the actions;
Amendment 189 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 c (new)
Paragraph 13 c (new)
13c. Calls on the European Commission to conduct an Annual Seminar with the participation of the Coastal and Marine Member States and the respective Regions to promote a pan-European dialogue, to facilitate the sharing of best practices and the implementation of a long-term strategy;
Amendment 190 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 d (new)
Paragraph 13 d (new)
13d. Recalls the importance of connectivity and accessibility, which differ in high and low season in the outermost regions and islands, which depend largely on sea and air transport. Also emphasizes the importance of creating regional plans that promote mobility within destinations. Asks the Commission that Action 12 also take into account the efficiency of state aid in coastal and maritime regions;
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 e (new)
Paragraph 13 e (new)
13e. Strongly encourages the Commission, together with Member States and stakeholders in the nautical and maritime tourism sector, to assess the need to create intelligent and innovative strategies as a solution to combat seasonality, adapted both to the periods of high and low season, taking into account various audiences. Calls on stakeholders to make efforts in creating experiences, products and complementary services integrated with local products, particularly connected with maritime heritage and culture, water sports, recreational sailing, observation of marine life and nature, sun and beach- related activities, links with artisanal fishing, food and health;
Amendment 192 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 f (new)
Paragraph 13 f (new)
13f. Highlights the importance of Cruise Tourism for the growth of the Tourism sector in Europe. Therefore calls on the Commission together with the Member States to assess the forms and existing port and nautical infrastructure, as well as to standardise the sorting of waste and recycling, in order to create innovative planning actions for these areas by developing the concept of the Smart Port City;
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 4 a (new)
Subheading 4 a (new)
Unlock the potential of Coastal and Marine Tourism;